Dispensing unit



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN T OR.

ATTORNEY March3, 1964 A. K. KUYK DISPENSING UNIT Originai Filed Jan. 18; 1960 A. K. KUYK DISPENSING UNIT March 3, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Jan. 18, 1960 ar/ nfz fi gyf ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,123,118 DISPENSING UNIT Aart K. Kuyk, Linden, Mich, assig'nor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Continuation of application Ser. No. 3,010, Jan. 18, 1960. This application Oct. 8, 1962, Ser. No. 229,780 4 Claims. (Cl. ISO-34) This invention relates to a storage and dispensing unit and more particularly to a compact storage and accessible dispensing unit for cylindrical members.

This is a continuation of my copending application, S.N. 3,010, filed January 18, 1960, and now abandoned.

The objects of this invention are to provide an article dispenser that is simple, eflicient and economical; to provide an inexpensive container to compactly store a plurality of articles so that they are readily accessible and easily removed; to provide a container having means to spread a plurality of stored articles to permit ready access to all of them; and to provide a dispensing unit that will prevent accidental removal of the items stored.

The foregoing objects are accomplished by providing a plurality of channel members having longitudinal access openings exposing a large portion of materials stored and releasably secured therein, and supported on a curved base member that spaces the containers when covering means are removed.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description and reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of one of the containers;

FIGURE 2 is an end view of the apparatus of FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a top view of the apparatus of FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a detailed view of the materials to be stored;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the assembled containers; and

FIGURE 6 is an end view of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 5.

Referring now to FIGURES l, 2 and 3, a dispensing unit 19 comprising a base section 12 having inclined side surfaces 14, 15 and upwardly extending U-shaped channel sections 16, 13. The tops of the U-shaped channels are provided with outwardly flared lip portions 19, 29, and wing portions 22, 23 are inwardly bent toward one another. Vertical access slots 24, 26 are provided to separate the U-shaped channels and provide an access opening. A spacing rib 27 upwardly extends with the cavity provided by the U-shaped channels to keep stored cylindrical members 28 within the access slots 24, 26. Although the containers 1% are particularly well suited for plastic identification tags, as disclosed in my US. Patent 2,929,161, it has obvious advantages for the storage of other articles. As shown in FIGURE 4, a suitable packaging band 39, such as pliofilm, may be utilized to secure a plurality of the cylindrical members 28 into a unit insertable in the dispensing member. The dispensing members are made as a unitary piece from plastic material in the preferred embodiment although metallic and other materials could also be utilized.

Referring now to FIGURE 5, a plurality of the dispensing units are shown locked in resilient channel members 36 that are provided with flexible inturned flange portions 38, 49 which are adapted to yieldably retain the base section 12 by engagement with the inclined side surfaces thereof. The dispensing units 10 may be individually inserted or removed by pulling them out directly or sliding them out the ends of the channel members 36. A plurality of the channel members 36 are placed side "ice by side on flexile plastic support strips 42, 44 that have a natural curvature in the unstressed, unflexed position to provide a bowed or arched portion 46 as shown in FIGURE 6. The flexile members may be mounted on a flexible cover or casing 43 that is provided with gripper type fasteners 50 and assumes the curvature of the flexile members 42.

In operation, the cylindrical units 28 are inserted within the individual dispensing members 10. The cover 48 may then be folded around the dispensing unit and the fasteners secured to provide a compact storage unit with the dispensing units held parallely closely adjacent one another. When it is desired to obtain the cylindrical members, the casing is unfastened and the flexile members 42 and 44 will resume their natural bowed condition so that the dispensing units 10 will be radially spaced or fanned, as shown in FIGURE 6, to permit access to all of the dispensing units. It should be noted that the space between the fasteners 50 on the cover is less than the distance around the periphery of the fanned or radially spaced dispensing units so that fastening the cover will stress and straighten the arched portion 46. The longitudinal access slots 16 and 18 permit the operator to reach into any one of the dispensing units and select a cylindrical member at any place between the flared lip and the spacer rib of the container. The inwardly bent wings of the channel members frictionally engage the stored units so that some manual pressure must be exerted to remove any of the units and they are thus fixedly se cured within the channel members. Plastic cylindrical members and plastic channel members provide readily deformable surfaces which permit easy removal and rigid retention.

Since some changes are possible in the details of construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of this invention, the scope thereof is to be determined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An article dispenser comprising;

a flexible support strip having a naturally bowed midsection capable of being stressed and temporarily flattened;

article holding means supported on the convex side of the bowed mid-section in spaced radially projecting fanned relationship when the mid-section is in the unstressed condition; and

means associated with the flexible support strip for stressing and temporarily flattening the bowed midsection thereof whereby the article holding means are brought into closely spaced parallel relationship due to the flexed condition of the mid-section.

2. An article dispenser comprising;

a flexible support strip having a naturally bowed midsection joined by side wings, said bowed mid-section capable of being stressed and temporarily flattened;

gripping means attached to the flexible support strip on the convex side of the bowed mid-section;

article holding means received in the gripping means and supported in radially projecting fanned relationship when the bowed mid-section is in the unstressed condition; and

closure means connected to the side wings of the flexible support strip and acting jointly thereon to stress and temporarily flatten the bowed mid-section whereby the article holding means are moved into closely spaced parallel relationship due to the flexed condition of the mid-section.

3. An article dispenser comprising;

a flexible support strip having a naturally bowed midsection joined by side wings, said bowed mid-section capable of being stressed and temporarily flattened;

gripping means arranged in spaced rows transversely across the flexible support strip on the convex side tionship due to the flexed condition of the rniclsecof the bowed mid-section; tion.

a plurality of article holding means capable of remov- 4. An article dispenser according to claim 3 wherein ably holding articles to be dispensed, each article said closure means comprises; holding means adapted to be slidabiy received in the 5 a flexible material, said rn'aterial adhering to the back gripping means and supported in radially projecting side of the flexible support means and being foldable fanned relationship when the bowed mid-section is around the a holding s; a i h unstressed di i n; d fastener means associated with the opposite ends of the flexible material to secure the ends together when in the folded condition, the distance between the fastener means being less than the peripheral distance around all of the article holding means when in the fanned condition.

closure means connected between the side wings of the flexible support strip and acting jointly thereon to 10 move the respective side Wings upwardly in arcuate fashion stressing and temporarily flattening the bowed mid-section whereby said article holding means are moved into closely spaced parallel rela- N references it d, 

1. AN ARTICLE DISPENSER COMPRISING; A FLEXIBLE SUPPORT STRIP HAVING A NATURALLY BOWED MIDSECTION CAPABLE OF BEING STRESSED AND TEMPORARILY FLATTENED; ARTICLE HOLDING MEANS SUPPORTED ON THE CONVEX SIDE OF THE BOWED MID-SECTION IN SPACED RADIALLY PROJECTING FANNED RELATIONSHIP WHEN THE MID-SECTION IS IN THE UNSTRESSED CONDITION; AND MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH THE FLEXIBLE SUPPORT STRIP FOR STRESSING AND TEMPORARILY FLATTENING THE BOWED MID- 